Prairie View defeated the Southern University Jaguars in William Nicks Building on Saturday, Mar. 5th. The win propelled the Panthers into the South Western Atlantic Conference tournament that started on March 9th.
Southern (10-7, 13-13) coached by Michael Grant, came into the game tied for 3rd in SWAC along with Grambling, Jackson State, and Mississippi Valley State.
Prairie View trailed early, but sheer determination and help from a hometown crowd kept the Panthers motivated during the game.
At the end of the first half Prairie View trailed by four points 23-27.
Whatever Coach Francis said during halftime motivated the squad to come out and force the Jaguars to commit turnovers, and give the Panthers a chance to gain the lead. The Jaguars at one point during the game amassed an eight point lead, but were unable to hit the big shot in the clutch.
Late in the second half Jason Breckenridge displayed the same poise he did during the Alcorn State game and hit the game winner to up the score 49-47, which gave the Panthers their 6th win in the SWAC conference. Breckenridge also had a team high two assists and a game high four steals.
Southern committed 22 turnovers in the game, which accounted for 12 of Prairie View’s points, and shot a humiliating thirty percent from the field.
Guard Chris Alexander led Southern with 10 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Deon Saunders and Nicholas Egland contributed with nine points.
Forward Anthony Oha, a junior from Houston, Texas led both teams in scoring with 13 points, shooting 5-of-6 from the field, and he also nabbed six rebounds.
The Panthers will play second ranked Alabama State, which will be their first opponent in the SWAC tournament.